Beginning Discipleship Lesson 4 – Jesus Sent Out Twelve and Seventy Two
Continue to conduct small group worship. Be sure to let them lead as much as possible in all aspects of your worship. Continue to hold them accountable to obey the previous lesson.
The items for accountability are:
Continue to monitor your spiritual life in reference to the Disciple’s Cross.
- The Lordship of Christ in your life – Is Christ still Lord of your life? Are you letting him be king of your life?
- The Word – Did you read your Bible at least 5 min/day?
- Prayer – Are you hearing God speak to you during your QT? (Show your journal or share 1 insight from and your obedience to what God showed you.)
- Fellowship with other Christians – Are there any broken relationships that need to be reconciled? What did you do to return to a good relationship?
- Witness to non-believers – Did you share the Gospel with at least 1 person this week? Tell their name.
- Show your “oikos” list of names.
- Who is your prayer partner?
- How many times did you pray for your first group of 5?
Review previous lesson
- Who had Cornelius invited to his house to wait to hear a message from God? (His relatives and his close friends.)
- What happened to all those who heard Peter’s message? (The Holy Spirit fell on them just as it had on the first group in Jerusalem. They spoke in other tongues, and probably were baptized very soon, probably that day.)
- Who was saved along with the jailer in Philippi? (His family)
- What did Jesus tell the man who was healed of the many demons? (Go and tell others like his family what God had done for him.)
Spiritual Emphasis: Learning how to recognize where God is working, and how to find a “Person of Peace.”
Story – Teach the lesson as interestingly as possible.
1. Read Luke 9:1-6 and 10:1-12. Jesus sent out the 12 and then later 72 others. His instructions were basically the same. In 10:6 the “Person of Peace” or “Son of Peace” is mentioned. This is a person who welcomes the messenger bringing the Gospel. They can greatly help the Gospel spread into a new area or community by “opening doors” and introducing the messenger to their “oikos.”
2. Mention or read Acts 10:24, 17:1-2; and 16:13-15. Share how Cornelius gathered his friends and family; how Paul went first usually to a synagogue to find God-fearing people, and that if there wasn’t a synagogue, he would look for some other way. Lydia was a Person of Peace. She invited him into her home.
3. There is a difference in a “Person of Peace” and knowing when God is working in a person’s life. Both are needed.
4. How do you know where God is working? What are some things only God can do? Read Rom. 3:10-12.
- A. How many people are righteous on their own? (No one)
- B. How many people understand spiritual things on their own? (No one)
- C. How many people seek after God on their own? (No one)
- D. How many people do good on their own? (No one)
5. Read John 6:44-45 and v. 65.
- A. Who can come to Jesus without being drawn by the Father? (No one)
- B. What does a person do if he listens to the Father and learns from him? (He comes to Jesus.)
- C. What is the only way a person can come to Jesus? (Only if the Father enables him.)
6. Read John 16:8. What 3 things does the Holy Spirit bring conviction of? (Guilt of sin, righteousness, and judgment)
7. So we must realize what the things are that only God can do:
- A. Only God can draw people to Himself.
- B. Only God can cause people to seek after Him.
- C. Only God can convict people of sin.
- D. Only God can convict people of righteousness.
- E. Only God can convict people of judgment.
8. So pray and watch to see what God does next. Make the connection between your prayer and what God reveals to you next.
9. Realize the difference between a “Person of Peace” and a person whom God is working on. A person of peace will welcome the messenger and sometimes help spread the message, sometimes even before he or she is a Christian. When God is working in a person’s life, they may be troubled and under conviction. They may lash in anger as they are really fighting against God. Or they may be seeking and act almost like a person of peace.
10. Ask probing questions like:
- A. How can I pray for you?
- B. Do you want to talk about it?
- C. What do you see as the greatest challenge in your life?
- D. Tell me what God is doing in your life.
11. Or you can share your testimony (Keep it short 1-3 min, keep it balanced, and follow it with a question.)
12. Another possibility is to share a Gospel presentation such as the Gospel Hand:
Thumb – represents God’s love. He gives us “thurmbs-up” to because He loves us and wants the best for us.
Pointer – represents the “accusing finger because of our sin. Our sin separates us from God’s love. The biggest gap between all our fingers is between our pointer (sin) and our thumb (love of God).
Middle man or Tall man – represents Jesus Christ, God’s provision for our sin. He was our substitute.
Ring finger – represents the commitment we need to make to get the provision that God has provided for us through the death of his son. The same kind of total commitment that a husband and wife SHOULD make is the kind of commitment we need to make with Jesus – that He alone is God and we won’t bow down and worship and/or pray to any other god or image.
Little finger – represents the prayer that we can do at anytime and NEED to do right now to invite him into your life and let him be your Lord and Savior. Don’t forget to lead someone to pray.
Discuss with these questions:
Describe a Person of Peace.
What are some things only God can do?
Can anyone come to Jesus unless God draws him?
What is one of the jobs of the Holy Spirit?
Can God be working in the life of a Person of Peace? Can they be the same? Are they always the same?
Practice re-telling the lesson.
How to Obey:
1.) Learn to share their personal testimony in a simple 1-3 minute outline.
a.) Life before you became a Christian
b.) How you knew you were lost/How you knew you needed to be saved /what crises was there in your life so you knew you needed a savior?
c.) How you became a Christian (What you actually did to receive/trust Christ)
d.) How your is Life different now that you are a Christian. (Don’t let it get out of balance in any one direction or the other. Make sure they close with a question asking for a response or some indication of interest. If there is, then they can be invited to gather their own oikos to start a bible study. Or if you feel more comfortable, use the Gospel Hand presentation.)
2.) The disciples should share their testimony or Gospel presentation with everyone on their oikos list, group by group, that they have been praying for since last week.
3.) Their goal is to start at least one group of 5-10 who are willing to study the Bible.
Verse to Memorize: And when that One comes, He will convict the world concerning sin, and concerning righteousness, and concerning judgment. John 16:8
Prayer – Pray for needs in group and ask for God to confirm His message in their lives through Spirit’s witness.